Health – UC Life Chiropractic Centrehttp://uclife.ca
Upper Cervical Chiropractic in Victoria BC -Fri, 16 Nov 2018 19:52:36 +0000en-UShourly1https://wordpress.org/?v=4.9.9Sleeping position – does it affect posture?http://uclife.ca/sleeping-position-does-it-affect-posture/
Fri, 16 Nov 2018 19:42:04 +0000http://uclife.ca/?p=2105We get quite a few questions about sleeping positions and the impact sleeping has on the spine. I think it’s important we understand one fact right off the start: when we are talking about posture and the spine, we are discussing the compressive forces of gravity as it relates to an upright position. When we […]

]]>We get quite a few questions about sleeping positions and the impact sleeping has on the spine. I think it’s important we understand one fact right off the start: when we are talking about posture and the spine, we are discussing the compressive forces of gravity as it relates to an upright position.

When we are standing or sitting, or when we are moving in an upright position, gravity and the weight of our body IS the stress being applied to the spine and IS the stress that needs to be managed with posture.

When we move from an upright position to a lay down position (sleeping), we change the relationship of this stress.

No longer do we have the compressive forces acting on the spine from gravity but rather we have gravity impacting our spines at 90 degrees to upright. This is a very different scenario.

Each and every day the body is compressed by gravity, but each and every night (assuming you sleep at night) the spine goes through a natural decompression state. This process as it relates to the spinal discs is knows as Imbibition. Imbibition is the NATURAL decompression process of the discs that counterbalances the compressive forces that it receives throughout the day.

The reason that this is important to understand, is that the ideas that surround posture and therefore the positioning of the spine are not as relevant in a decompressive state as they are in a compressive state. Therefore, it will always be more impactful to really consider posture during your upright day rather than your lay down night.

That being said, here are a couple of important considerations for sleeping position:

1. Stomach sleeping

The reason that avoiding stomach sleeping can be a good idea is that stomach sleeping involves heavy rotation of the head and neck. Any time you put a joint and muscle system into a stressed position for long periods of time, you increase the possibility of strain. A neutral position of the head and neck such as with side lying or laying on your back is going to reduce rotation tension in the neck.

Suggestion: If you are a stomach sleeper, but want to reduce tension on the neck, try hugging a pillow to the same side of the body that you’re turning your head. In this scenario, you can still get the same sensation of being a stomach sleeper, but by propping up the shoulder/torso you avoid having to have to turn your head as aggressively and hopefully reduce tension in the neck muscles and joints.

2. Comfort should be your guide

When it comes to sleeping position, I can’t seem to get away from the idea that there is no one perfect position for sleeping but that YOUR ACTUAL COMFORT with sleeping positions or use of pillows/mattresses, should be a major source of feedback in determining if it’s right for you. No two bodies are the same. If it feels right, it’s likely to be a strong indicator that for you, it’s working. Remember the goal for sleep is to get to sleep, and being comfortable and relaxed tends to be a prerequisite for falling asleep.

3. Develop a routine for sleeping

Often sleeping is taken for granted in that it’ll just be there are the end of a hard day. Spend some time talking to someone that is unable to get a full night’s sleep and you understand that that’s just not the case. Preparing to go to sleep makes a huge difference. Turn off your devices an hour before you plan on closing your eyes. There’s no doubt that intense blue light prior to bed is only stimulating the eyes and disrupting the natural circadian sleep cycles.

Try “unwinding” before bed to prep your body, and realize that watching an action packed intense movie minutes before turning off the lights is not unwinding the nervous system but rather ramping it up. It actually makes sense that if you stimulate your brain with intense stress right before bed that it wouldn’t want to fall sleep. You’ve put it on guard and it needs to therefore monitor the situation for safety before shutting down for the night.

If you are struggling with comfort when sleeping, I would suggest considering it from the perspective that the tension in your body and spine that you bring to bed is a reflection of the tension in your body that was developed over the day that is ending. I would focus on your upright posture during the day to try to bring a more relaxed and comfortable body to bed rather than try to fix the problem with a sleeping position. There’s way more bang for your buck concentrating on posture during the day, and you’ll discover that questions about pillows and sleeping positions will become a thing of the past as you’ll wake up feeling like last night’s sleep was GREAT!

Foundation Training is one of my favourite resources for posture considerations. We run a monthly introduction class at the office; give us a call for the next date 250-386-5433.

]]>Headaches and the Upper Neckhttp://uclife.ca/headaches-and-the-upper-neck/
Fri, 09 Nov 2018 19:55:24 +0000http://uclife.ca/?p=2101Something is going on when you’re experiencing headaches. It’s not always clear why or how they are caused, and there are lots of potential triggers out there, but continuing to search for a solution is important to figure it all out. Often times when I’ve spoken to patients that are experiencing headaches, they don’t know […]

]]>Something is going on when you’re experiencing headaches. It’s not always clear why or how they are caused, and there are lots of potential triggers out there, but continuing to search for a solution is important to figure it all out.
Often times when I’ve spoken to patients that are experiencing headaches, they don’t know what it is that’s causing them.

In our office we consider posture and the position of the head and neck as an area that needs to be looked at.

Consider this, if you don’t have proper alignment of the head and neck there will be tension and pressure in both the soft tissues of the neck, but also internally in the sensitive tissues of the spinal canal and with the fluids that flow up and down the neck into and out of the head.

One of the main concerns with upper neck misalignment is that it changes the flow patterns of fluids. Have you ever considered that your headaches might be pressure based? We find that it often has to do with fluids not being able to flow smoothly out of the head, and consequently, the head becomes over filled with fluids creating a true pressure sensation.

Now, this is purely speculative as we don’t have the ability to measure internal pressure inside the skull, but what we do know is that patients report changes in the pressure that they feel when the alignment of the head and neck is restored.

There’s always a trial period to see how your body reacts to any changes that you make to it. If you suspected that diet was a trigger for your headaches, you could eliminate particular foods and see what happens once you remove them from your diet. So too, is the process with the upper neck. When misalignment exists, making a solid correction that resets the postural position of the spine will give us the chance to see what happens internally and if there is going to be a change in your headache situation.

We’re very passionate about helping find solutions to headaches at UC Life. We would love to hear your story and have planned a discussion night on headaches at the office. Please join us, and we’ll see if we can’t get to the bottom of this.

]]>Using healthy oils when cooking – to get some FAT content into your diethttp://uclife.ca/using-healthy-oils-when-cooking-to-get-some-fat-content-into-your-diet/
Fri, 02 Nov 2018 20:19:31 +0000http://uclife.ca/?p=2094When we dissect “macronutrients” discussing diet, we are primarily talking about protein, carbohydrate and fat. In regards to these macronutrients, there is much debate on what the balance of these should be for optimal health. Obviously the type of diet that you follow will drastically change the amount of these macronutrients that you are eating […]

]]>When we dissect “macronutrients” discussing diet, we are primarily talking about protein, carbohydrate and fat.

In regards to these macronutrients, there is much debate on what the balance of these should be for optimal health. Obviously the type of diet that you follow will drastically change the amount of these macronutrients that you are eating and therefore providing for your body to maintain health.

The body needs fuel to operate on a day to day basis and to heal and repair over time. We understand eating is important, and deciding what to eat is the true debate. Lately I have been trending towards a more “Palaeolithic” or “Ketogenic” diet as learning about the harmful effects of sugar has pushed me in that direction.

I don’t know the answer, but I can tell you that I’m experimenting daily to find what works for me, and therefore choosing what to focus on when it comes to food.

Protein

One of the basics that I do believe is true, is that protein is understood. You can get protein from meat products (relatively easy) and for those that are vegetarian, it’s one of the more important macronutrients to consider because you are focused on eating particular plant-based proteins to satisfy what your body needs.

Carbohydrates

Carbohydrates, although maybe a little misunderstood, are typically not an issue on the question of “Am I getting enough?” The average diet or even the diet promoted as the “ideal” such as the Canada Food Pyramid has a strong emphasis on grains and therefore, most people that just eat whatever they want, will be getting ample carbohydrates on a day to day basis.

Fat

The macronutrient known as fat, is often the most misunderstood. Fat has been vilified over the past 40 years, because the medical community made a decision that fat was the problem in diet that was leading to cholesterol issues, heart disease and other commonly known health concerns. This therefore created a low fat diet, which when we look deeper into low fat products, have often been supplemented (for flavour) with sugar to make sure that these products were palatable to the average consumer.

In this day and age with all of the content and information out there, we’re seeing a huge push from scientists and doctors coming out of the shadows and bringing back the truth about fat, which is: it’s not bad and that they’ve had the science wrong all these years and that sugar in fact is the problem.

Using quality oils when cooking is a great way to make sure that you are getting enough healthy fats in your diet. A few of my favourites are:
-Coconut Oil
-Avocado Oil
-Extra Virgin Olive Oil

Cooking with an abundance of oil in your pan is a good idea. Not only does it make clean up easier, but it allows you to consume the oil and therefore get the fat content present in these oils.

Generally speaking, whatever diet you follow, most people are likely too high in carbohydrate consumption, and too low in fat content. If you are still purchasing your groceries with a deep, ingrained thought that you are trying to eat in a low fat manner, I would suggest that you look into this. Low sugar should be a decision maker for you, and if you look at the ingredients list of a product that is low in fat, you may be surprised to learn that sugar content (carbohydrate) is high.

Fat consumed does not equate to fat stored.

If you wish to lose weight/fat it does not mean you need to remove fat from what you eat. Stored body fat is a result of excess sugar in the body that is being stored as fat. The body has the ability to make these conversions with ease between macronutrients and it’s just a bit more complex than the food industry has lead on.

Have a great day, and please don’t hesitate to follow up with any questions or comments.

]]>Foundation Training and the benefits of working on posturehttp://uclife.ca/foundation-training-and-the-benefits-of-working-on-posture/
Thu, 11 Oct 2018 19:27:06 +0000http://uclife.ca/?p=2073Posture is the daily and moment by moment battle of you holding your body weight up against gravity. This statement really hits home the need for developing a strategy so that you can win this battle, as the repercussions from losing this battle tend to be problematic (and painful!). First, we must understand that we […]

Posture is the daily and moment by moment battle of you holding your body weight up against gravity.

This statement really hits home the need for developing a strategy so that you can win this battle, as the repercussions from losing this battle tend to be problematic (and painful!). First, we must understand that we are talking about seated or standing positions, since gravity only effects us negatively in regards to posture when we are upright.

The most classic representation of poor posture is the slouched position.

Slouching includes a drop of the rib cage, a flattening of the low back and consequently the head falling forward. Ultimately when we slouch we are creating a single curve of the spine that is very much similar to the fetal position or being rolled forward.

This is an important piece. We are born with one curvature to our spine in that same direction as slouching (this curve remains throughout a lifetime in the upper back), which is why the term fetal position exists, because a new born baby is in a rounded position. The developmental phases of growth include a time period when that new born eventually begins the process of lifting her head, breaking out of the fetal position and putting a new curvature (in the reverse direction) into the neck. A later phase occurs when the child begins to stand and we add in a second reversed curvature in the low back (lumbar spine) known as lordosis.

This leaves us with 3 distinct curvatures to the spine.

One primary (born with it) and 2 secondary (developed) curvatures in the neck and low back. Here is the caveat, just like anything that is developed (think muscles or stamina), posture follows the rule of “use it or lose it.” These curvatures of the neck and low back have to be continuously stressed into the body to ensure that they remain over a lifetime. If we spend a lifetime slouching we run the risk of losing these curvatures (because they’re not being used) and consequently we fall into a more and more slouched position that becomes a true spinal structural problem.

So how do we get back to an ideal posture?

The best system that I have discovered is Foundation Training (www.foundationtraining.com) which is an exercise program designed to exaggerate the proper curvatures of the spine and train you to develop the muscles of the back to be able to sustain a proper posture when you are standing or sitting. You can find more information at their website, or watch some videos that they produced on Youtube by simply searching “Foundation Training”. We also host an introductory class at UC Life (next class is at 6pm on October 22nd – please join if interested), but know that true posture changes happen with repetition and there’s always work to be done daily to manage your posture on a moment by moment basis.

There are also lots of products going around these days that help to pull you into a proper postural position. Some are devices worn on hips/low back when sitting (for desk jobs) and some are worn around the shoulders to force them backwards helping you on your quest for that great upright posture. My take on these devices is that they can be extremely helpful. I don’t see anything wrong with getting help with this battle, but I would also remind people that using a supportive device should be used to help you make changes to posture and shouldn’t be thought of as a fix for posture (otherwise you will become dependant on the device).

The answer, like many positive things in health (diet, exercise, posture) is that they require work. It would be a lot easier if they didn’t, but no one can get stronger just thinking about push ups You have to get out there and do the work.

If you need help, let us know. The intro class at UC Life can be very helpful as a starting point to find out where you are, and open your eyes to the right movements needed to manage posture. Hope you’re having a lovely October, enjoy the string of beautiful days were having in Victoria!

]]>Numbness in the hands and feet – what’s going on?http://uclife.ca/numbness-in-the-hands-and-feet-whats-going-on/
Fri, 28 Sep 2018 16:59:37 +0000http://uclife.ca/?p=2062We hear often about numbness/tingling or loss of feeling in the hands and feet. It’s actually something that is very common in society and truthfully, there are quite a few different reasons why this may be occurring. In reality, hand or foot numbness can be occurring from compromise that happens anywhere from the area that is […]

]]>We hear often about numbness/tingling or loss of feeling in the hands and feet. It’s actually something that is very common in society and truthfully, there are quite a few different reasons why this may be occurring.

In reality, hand or foot numbness can be occurring from compromise that happens anywhere from the area that is affected (in the hand or foot) all the way up the limb, into the central area of the spine or spinal cord and also even higher up at the brain itself. There is no doubt that sitting on the ground leaning back on your hands could cause them to “fall asleep” but we also know that hand numbness can be associated with MS which is a brain based neurological disorder.

So how do we know which is which?

Hand or foot numbness can come from either blood flow involvement or neurological involvement. Often times when someone talks about HOW or WHEN the numbness occurs, this can help to differentiate between potential problems. For example, if every time you fall asleep on your left side, your left arm goes numb, it would be prudent to consider that there is a compression of the shoulder girdle that’s limiting blood flow to the arm creating the numbness. In contrast, if you’re loosing sensation in the feet over the past few years and there does not appear to be a physical position/movement that produces the numbness, we may want to consider issues related to neurological involvement or overall blood distribution in the body (central control issues) as a potential cause.

Obviously any conditions involving the central nervous system are more serious as it relates to your overall health and should be considered from a multitude of directions which would include blood work and diet investigation, but numbness that comes on from physical movements/positions can be equally annoying. A more thorough history as well as physical exam is the starting point for understanding what is going on to lead you in the right direction to make positive changes.

Do you have any specific questions? I would be happy to discuss them; you can reach me at drkittleson@uclife.ca , leave a comment or PM us on FaceBook.

]]>What’s the link between weather changes and headaches?http://uclife.ca/whats-the-link-between-weather-changes-and-headaches/
Thu, 06 Sep 2018 19:04:37 +0000http://uclife.ca/?p=2056What’s the link between the weather changing and someone experiencing headaches or migraines? One of the potential links has everything to do with pressure. Weather changes, as we know from understanding the Barometer, create measurable pressure changes in the air. Sometimes these changes are slow and gradual and sometimes they are very fast and intense, […]

]]>What’s the link between the weather changing and someone experiencing headaches or migraines?

One of the potential links has everything to do with pressure. Weather changes, as we know from understanding the Barometer, create measurable pressure changes in the air. Sometimes these changes are slow and gradual and sometimes they are very fast and intense, all of which can change the way that we feel these changes in our bodies.

Our bodies are built to handle these pressure changes, but sometimes you will meet people that struggle with pressure changes (especially involving the head). There are many people out there that can predict a weather change coming due to a headache starting, or other people that would never consider going scuba diving because they would not be able to equalize the pressure in their head while going underwater.

One thing that we know about pressure is that when it increases it expands. Part of the reason that the head is an area that we feel pressure changes is because the head has a fluid system (blood and Cerebral Spinal Fluid) that is very much affected by expansion with pressure, as well as a hard outer shell (skull) that can’t expand to handle the increased space needed.

Why is it that two people could be standing side by side when a weather system comes rolling in and feel very different pressure symptoms in the head? It has a lot to do with your anatomy as well as the openings that allow for the smooth passage of fluids in and out of the head.

From our view point as a clinic, it’s very easy to understand and assess posture and alignment in regards to head and neck positioning. We need to know just how well your body is positioned and if there is room for improvement in alignment.

]]>A critical factor to understand if you want to lose weighthttp://uclife.ca/a-critical-factor-to-understand-if-you-want-to-lose-weight/
Sat, 18 Aug 2018 16:25:37 +0000http://uclife.ca/?p=2039On the topic of weight management, or losing body weight, I had an interesting conversation with someone in the office the other day. They mentioned to me that they were interested in “dropping a few pounds” and made reference to feeling like they had put on close to 20 lbs over the past few […]

]]>On the topic of weight management, or losing body weight, I had an interesting conversation with someone in the office the other day.

They mentioned to me that they were interested in “dropping a few pounds” and made reference to feeling like they had put on close to 20 lbs over the past few years and that they wanted to get the weight off.

Right away I was concerned with the direction that the conversation was going because they told me that they were “running on a treadmill to get the weight off”.

Now let’s be clear, running on a treadmill is fine. I don’t do it, but if people want to use a treadmill as a way to increase their activity that is great. I think it’s important to understand that their success in achieving THEIR goals of losing body fat is going to be much more impacted by their diet than the time spent running.

Here’s a dilemma to consider:

Stored body fat is not automatically accessible just because you burn more calories with activity. Fat storage is only accessible for energy use IF YOU MAKE IT ACCESSIBLE and that is a biochemistry/physiology concept that will be dictated by one particular variable more than anything else in the body, and that variable is INSULIN.

Insulin is a hormone released in the body when sugar levels are high in the blood stream as a way to get the sugar out of the blood (because it’s toxic). Where does it put that sugar? It converts it to fat and stores it in the exact places that most of us don’t want it.

The dilemma is this: IF you are consuming sugar and insulin is high in the blood stream, you are going to be storing fat, regardless of your desire to use and ultimately lose body fat despite your work out.

One of the most unfortunate situations one could see would be to observe someone running on a treadmill while drinking a sugary “energy drink.”

It’s a impossibility to lose body fat while consuming sugar.

I bring this up in an attempt to help people eliminate frustration around their goals. If you want to lose body fat you need to learn how to make that body fat accessible.

Diet is the answer, and my personal opinion is that controlling sugar intake is the #1 first step to success.

A couple of books to consider:

The Primal Fat Burner – Nora Gedgaudas

The Keto Reset Diet – Mark Sisson

Both of these books outline why and what it looks like to convert from a high sugar diet (which is 90%

of people currently) to a low sugar diet.

It includes understanding carbohydrates and making wise choices with your diet to put you into a fat adapted physiology where your body will naturally and EASILY use fat stores for energy rather than the sugar from your last meal.

Trust me, it’s not easy but it’s very effective. If you’re up for the challenge, I’m here to help. Get the books, give them a read, let me know how I can help you hit those goals.

]]>Chronic versus acute issues; what’s the difference?http://uclife.ca/chronic-versus-acute-issues-whats-the-difference/
Sat, 14 Jul 2018 18:33:09 +0000http://uclife.ca/?p=2036Chronic vs acute issues…what’s the difference? By definition, the difference is all about time. Acute issues just happened, and chronic issues have been around longer (sometimes weeks/months and sometimes even years). There can also be a level of complexity involved in some chronic issues that should be considered and recognized. As an example, if you […]

By definition, the difference is all about time. Acute issues just happened, and chronic issues have been around longer (sometimes weeks/months and sometimes even years).

There can also be a level of complexity involved in some chronic issues that should be considered and recognized. As an example, if you tore a knee ligament as a high school athlete and years later you have regular knee pain when exercising, it MAY BE due to damage in the knee that cannot heal.

BUT, there also may be chronic issues that are simply not being addressed appropriately. Because this is often the case with muscular pain (sore neck, shoulders, back, hips etc) we want to have a good understanding of the physiology involved in different tissues of the body.

As an example, muscles heal pretty quick when they can (2-3 weeks) but ligaments or tendons take longer (6-8 weeks), so knowing what is injured should give you some time frame for seeing recovery.

In the case of a muscular pain that is chronic and has been around for months (far longer than the 2-3 weeks mentioned above) this falls therefore into the category of chronic pain.

A couple things to consider:

1) What ever you are doing to help it, is not helping. If you’ve tried rest, therapies, stretching, strengthening, icing, heat etc etc. and it’s continuing, something else needs to happen; you need to keep trying something new.

2) Consider your posture as a major stress to your body and see if you can work there to limit the daily stress of gravity. Not everyone recognizes how impactful just sitting, standing and generally positioning yourself upright all day, can be on the muscular system of the body.

3) Consider a chronic issue to be a daily acute issue instead. The reason being, is that it forces you to take seriously what’s happening today that is CONTRIBUTING to your pain levels. If we only think that the problem was 3 months ago when the pain started we are not in the right frame of mind to tackle the issue today and therefore often are involved in repeating many of the stresses that are causing today’s pain.

]]>Why monitoring your sugar levels will lead to a happier lifehttp://uclife.ca/why-monitoring-your-sugar-levels-will-lead-to-a-happier-life/
Fri, 08 Jun 2018 05:26:40 +0000http://uclife.ca/?p=1998The sugar industry has quite the history in our world and its final chapter is still not complete. We are still, to this day, completely overwhelmed by sugar in our diet and it remains a constant health struggle due to its combination of addictive qualities and toxic nature. Let’s get one thing out there right […]

]]>The sugar industry has quite the history in our world and its final chapter is still not complete.We are still, to this day, completely overwhelmed by sugar in our diet and it remains a constant health struggle due to its combination of addictive qualities and toxic nature.

Let’s get one thing out there right away, this author is in the exact same boat as everyone else.Sugar is delicious, and any time I remove/eliminate/limit sugar intake from my daily diet choices, it requires strong will power and a diligent mind.

The bottom line is that sugar is a toxic substance in the body when it enters the blood stream.Toxic substances have harmful effects on our bodies and typically result in destruction of organ systems and symptoms of body dysfunction.

There are so many ways that sugar impacts our body negatively; it all stems from the initial contact point in the digestive tract upon ingestion, the artery walls and circulation of sugar within the blood after absorption, and the consequential reaction of storage of sugar as a means of elimination.

These three basic concepts listed above put digestive symptoms, cardiovascular symptoms, and obesity as three potential outcomes just from the processing of sugar not to mention the negative outcomes of long term use and years of breakdown that come with a consistent sugar based diet.

So, let’s talk about what to do.

First off, you have to recognize that sugar is a problem.If you’re not there yet, I would encourage you to learn more about sugar and what’s going on.There are a lot of intelligent people that can relay the biochemistry and science better than I can and their stories can be viewed in documentaries on Netflix or books written on the subject.

Secondly, we want to acknowledge what we need to do about it.Ultimately, we need to reduce and eliminate as much of the raw, processed and simple sugar compounds that are found in most foods sold in your local grocery store.

Thirdly, after removing sugar, we need to stay on track for at least 90 days to give your body a chance to show you the benefits of these choices.Yes, it takes a bit of time to “kick the sugar addiction” and let your body get back to health.

If you are just getting started on eliminating sugar, I would focus on these simple ideas:

1) Recognize the obvious
Candy, chocolate bars, white sugar and all of these “sweets” that we know and love, are literally sugar BOMBS and have to be taken out of your diet.

2) Understand the relationship of sugar to carbohydrates
Carbohydrates are broken down into glucose (sugar) and therefore have a similar biochemical reaction to the sugar that we do recognize.High carbohydrate foods are not your friends.

This includes breads, cereals, grains and starchy vegetables.

I fully understand that these are staples of most diets, but to get the biggest bang for your efforts, these two areas are the most obvious places to make changes.There is no point in talking about more detailed issues with sugar such as fruits, sweeteners or protein if you’re eating a pasta dinner followed by dessert of ice cream.

A fantastic resource for reading and understanding what is going on is a book called “The Primal Fat Burner” by Nora Gedgaudas.

In this book Nora lays out the basics of sugar in the diet, and what to do about it.It’s a great read which offers not only great explanation, but also practical steps to take and a long list of recipes to help you stick to the changes without losing variety and excitement in your meals.

]]>What the heck are sleep cycles?http://uclife.ca/what-the-heck-are-sleep-cycles/
Mon, 04 Jun 2018 19:15:20 +0000http://uclife.ca/?p=1995Each and every night your body goes through a cycle of different depths (light vs deep) of sleep and what we call REM sleep (the deepest). We don’t stay in one particular depth for long periods, but rather CYCLE through the different levels multiple times throughout the night. A rough estimate is about 90 minutes […]

]]>Each and every night your body goes through a cycle of different depths (light vs deep) of sleep and what we call REM sleep (the deepest). We don’t stay in one particular depth for long periods, but rather CYCLE through the different levels multiple times throughout the night.

A rough estimate is about 90 minutes to complete a cycle before you start over and begin another one. Here’s something that I’ve been playing with to help with sleep…

Have you noticed that sometimes you’ll wake up and feel very refreshed and other times wake up and feel more groggy? It’s speculated that how you feel upon rising has a lot to do with where you are in that sleep cycle when you’re woken.

If you wake at the end of a cycle, then you get that feeling of “complete” sleep as opposed to the mid cycle grogginess.

So, when someone asks, “what’s the most appropriate amount of sleep each and every night?”
I’m hesitant to give a number of hours, but rather a more applicable/experimental answer to help you determine what works for you!

Here’s what I do. I start with the average 90 minute cycle and multiply that out by how long I want to sleep, always planning to wake at the end of that cycle. This means that my options for sleep are 4 1/2 hours, 6 hours, 7 1/2 hours or 9 hours (multiples of 90 minute cycles).

I personally go with the 6 or 7 1/2 hour options, and then set an alarm to wake up and see if I feel like I hit the end of a cycle or mid cycle (based on my scientifically valid grogginess scale…).

If using 90 minute cycles doesn’t seem to work for you, try 75 minute cycles and multiply it out leaving you with choices for 5 hours, 6:15, 7:30, 8:45 of actual sleep time. Again, see how you feel in the morning upon waking and make a judgement call based on how you feel.

In the end, you may come to the conclusion that you do your best with 7:20 minutes of sleep, which is fantastic!

There are some apps out there, and the Fitbit can help with measuring different cycles at night based on movement.

Does anyone already know the answer to how many hours a night they need to feel their best?